When I first came across the language learning technique called “Shadowing”, I was intrigued.
In crime novels "to shadow" someone means to follow closely behind the person, watch what they do, where they go. Generally speaking, the idea is to gather some kind of information about the person or activity.
I recently described my 6 Listening Practice Tips for my Seventh Language. However, with the technique of "Language Shadowing", as practiced by Alexander Argüelles, you gather information to better imitate what you hear. And that can take you to the next level of your target language.
Language Shadowing Explained
It was the linguist Alexander Argüelles who in the 1990s developed Shadowing as a systematic technique for learning and practicing a language. He first used it for German and Korean and then for a number of other languages.
Argüelles has made three videos demonstrating and explaining Shadowing. They can be viewed directly on YouTube, or via his LinkedIn profile.
Video Number 1 (2008)
This short video is just a minute long and shows Alexander Argüelles "Shadowing" Chinese while walking back and forth on a bridge. Here the three obvious features of his technique are: 1) listening and immediately repeating aloud 2) walking briskly outside at the same time 3) looking at the text intermittently
Video Number 2 (2009)
In this 13-minute video, Argüelles answers some questions viewers have asked about his first Language Shadowing video. For example:
• Does one need to walk back and forth and turn rapidly on a bridge? His answer is "no". You can do it on a treadmill, but it's more pleasant to walk outside on a trail. The basic idea is to combine exercise with learning.
• Are the speed and motion necessary? His answer: It works best for him. Moving about swiftly encourages you to say focused and maintain good posture. It's no mystery that correct posture and articulation are important for speaking well.
• Do you have to do Shadowing in public? His answer: It's actually not ideal to practice it in public because one may feel self-conscious about walking around speaking aloud. And, people do come up to ask what you're doing. Still, he suggests it's not a bad way to deal with self-consciousness.
• How is it possible to say the foreign language "at the same time" as the native speaker? His answer: You need to practice doing this. Repetition helps a lot and with time you'll get better. The goal is to listen and repeat a split second later as best as you can. (In the next video, Argüelles also calls this technique "echoing".)
Video Number 3 (2009)
In the third video, which is just under an hour long, Argüelles goes over his Shadowing technique step by step and in considerable detail. As a number of language teachers and learners have pointed out, the technique of "listening and repeating" to learn a language is not an innovation made recently.
Children do it naturally when they learn their first language.
As a technique, listening and repeating (also called "parroting") became part of language teaching decades ago, before the internet popularized it with easily accessible audio.
However, Alexander Argüelles shaped the technique of Shadowing into a formal method with specific steps that he used to achieve his language learning goals. Early in the video he explains:
"Listen to [the audio] very closely through ear phones and make the sounds that you hear as soon as you hear them. ... You have to talk on top of the voice as you hear it coming. ... This will give you feedback. ... [Shadowing] proved for me to be the best ... means of starting to learn a language, of taking a language that you don't know and planting it, literally planting it inside your brain so that it can grow there."
Below is a brief outline of the steps or stages he describes. However, to really understand his method, you should look at the video Argüelles made. To learn by using Shadowing, you need a set of recordings with no pauses and a book that is bilingual with the text on opposite pages. The lessons should be short. To prepare for any Shadowing exercise, think in the language as best as you can.
As I understand them, there are 8 Stages to learning a language with Shadowing: Stage 1: Blind Shadowing (15-20 min) of a lesson or lessons. This means repeating almost simultaneously even if you don't understand what's being said. Stage 2: Do Shadowing while looking at the text of the teaching language. Stage 3: Do Shadowing of the same text while looking back and forth between the teaching language and the target language to check the meaning. Stage 4: Do Shadowing of the text while looking at the target language only. Stage 5: Do Shadowing with brisk walking. Stage 6: Sit down, look at the lesson(s) without audio and compare the texts in the two languages. Read the text aloud. Write the text of the lesson(s) out by hand. Stage 7: Once you've finished the whole book, type out the entire text double-spaced. Read the text and fill in the meaning of words you don't know. You can do that several times. Add some grammar exercises. Stage 8: Take the audio for a walk and Shadow it from start to finish.
Argüelles is quick to say that Shadowing is not the only technique or method he uses for learning and practicing a language. He has used and uses other techniques: reading, regular listening, listening while running, grammar practice, translation.
I should add that Argüelles is not your "regular" language learner. Often, he'll study many hours a day. He says he knows around 50 languages, and is featured in Michael Erard's book: "Babel No More. The Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners".
Experiences and Opinions
Looking for feed-back about Language Shadowing on the internet from other learners, I found a few voices and opinions (Several of them are in the answers to the question on Quora: "How effective is the shadowing technique to learn languages".)
Voices "For" Shadowing
• Richard deLong (on Quora) states that it helps intonation, pronunciation, and is good for "getting your mouth and brain back into the language." • Phil Crimmins (on Quora) claims that you learn to mimic the emotional content of what is being said. It's like going to the gym for training your mouth muscles. • Ivan Ottinger (on Quora) says it improves reaction speed for speaking. • Alexandra Edlinger (on Quora) suggests that you can use it effectively for preparing specific situations, such as job interviews. • A person with the name "clever clogs" (on LingQ Forum) finds that it helps to develop more natural rhythm and pace.
Voices "Against" Shadowing
• Steve Kaufmann (on LingQ Forum and YouTube video) clearly does not like the method. He says that it detracts from his enjoyment, that he doesn't like walking around briskly outside reciting what he's listening to, etc. • Judith Meyer (on Quora) doesn't use Shadowing. The technique may "burn certain words or sentence structures into your mind" but she finds it less efficient than Spaced Repetition. She even doubts that Shadowing helps at all with fluency.
My Opinion
To follow Argüelles' method exactly seems like lot of hard work and not everybody has the commitment and discipline that he has. He says himself that it takes weeks to get the method down correctly.
I have not used Language Shadowing as a daily formal technique, though I have been doing "shadowing" (lower case) to improve my fluency in French, Spanish, and Italian. Repeating what I hear almost simultaneously and at conversational speech helps me to speak more naturally.
Argüelles uses the analogy that Shadowing is similar to a "video game", where you repeat many steps many times before you get to the next level. In his words: "You listen and speak many times, and do this again and again". He also suggests that once you've got the method down, you can experiment with it, and use it in a way that it works for you.
For me, using bits and pieces of the technique is a productive way of adding variety to my language practice. It's also a way I can really push myself to speak fast and at length. I'd love to hear about your take on Language Shadowing!
Bio: Ulrike Rettig is the co-founder of Gamesforlanguage.com. She is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, the Netherlands, and Canada. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and leave any comments with contact or below.
In our last post, Ulrike and I had briefly mentioned that we had stayed in a wonderful apartment during our visit to Copenhagen. (picture left)
We've said in previous posts that we prefer to rent an apartment whenever we stay longer than a few days in a city. We did so in Rome, Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, London, Stockholm, Seville and Madrid, all cities that a worth exploring for more than a day or two.
So when Lysha Rohan contacted us to write a post about short stay apartments, we thought it might interest readers who are considering this option. Lysha emphasizes the many advantages short stay apartments have over hotels - and we agree and like those as well. We would be amiss, however, not to also mention a few drawbacks we have encountered ourselves in the past.
Depending from whom you rent the short stay apartment, from an individual owner, a real estate company, online sites such as VRBO, WIMDU or Airbnb (all of which we have used in the past), how to get the keys to the apartment is often the major coordination challenge right at the beginning. Different from a hotel, there is typically no receptionist. That means you have to make your arrangements beforehand for access to the apartment.
Due diligence is especially required when renting from individuals, who require a deposit. Many online sites provide guarantees or offer cancellation options.
Apartments can also differ greatly in accessibility (e.g. no elevator to get to fourth floor), furnishings and equipment (e.g. kitchen utensils and cook ware), cleanliness, etc.
In general, you get what you pay for. Online sites today provide pictures and lists of the major amenities. Nevertheless, you would do well to confirm that those which important to you are indeed there.
During one of our stays in Rome, more than ten years ago, we were in contact with the apartment owner, who confirmed that "internet access was available".
However when we got there, we realized that a modem and router were installed in the upstairs apartment that he also owned, but not in ours. "Internet available" clearly meant something else to this owner.
It took us several days of insistence and follow-up phone calls to get some action. Finally, I helped the owner drill through thick masonry walls and sneak a cable from upstairs to our apartment. (This was before WIFI became popular.)
In spite of that and other "adventures" we've been very happy with our short stay apartments so far. We have already reserved one for our next European stay in Prague later this year.
Lysha's Take on Short Stay Apartments
Short stay apartments, otherwise known as ‘service apartments’ are a great accommodation option for all kinds of travelers. Cities, in general, are filled with such short stay apartments. (see example right) As a traveler, you have so many options to choose from that you're sure to find one that fits your budget.
Travelers today have a lot more options to choose from than those who followed this passion years ago. They are faced with making choices everywhere: type of trip, lodging, food, gadgets, clothing, etc.
Thus, decision making has become all the more important now. In order to make the right decisions, one needs to have access to correct and helpful information. This article focuses on the benefits of using short stay apartment for travel.
Short stay apartments are a great accommodation option, especially for certain destinations. A stay in an apartment is different from staying in a hotel. Here are the main differences that I see: Short Stay Apartments: 1. Offer a greater degree of privacy. 2. Prove to be more economical. Hotels: 1. Because of the hustle and bustle that hotels generate, privacy is somewhat compromised. 2. Because of the services offered, they are often more expensive.
What is a short stay apartment and what can you expect when you stay in one?
• Short stay apartments are designed for people who are looking for accommodation for short periods of time.
• Generally speaking, the rates are fixed on a weekly or monthly basis and are sometimes negotiable, depending on the apartment.
• Short stay apartments, just like hotels, offer different types of rooms. Most such apartments have a single room or a double room. But you can also find studio apartments with kitchen or apartments with multiple bedrooms (2+). These obviously work well for families.
• Most service apartments have the basic amenities that travelers consider to be a must. In particular, you can expect to find Wi-Fi services, equipped kitchens, TV sets, laundry facilities and security services. Some also offer other more hotel like amenities, such as housekeeping, room service etc.
Obviously, short stay apartments don't work for travelers who insist on hopping from city to city. But they are ideal for "slow travel". Spending a week, a fortnight or even a month in a place allows you to soak up the local atmosphere, learn the language a little, and explore the city on foot or by bike.
Here are the reasons why many "slow" travelers choose short stay apartments for their lodging.
1. Economical
The right kind of short stay apartment can be quite economical and give you good value for your money.
Such apartments are generally less expensive than hotels that provide services which you don't need or offer amenities you don't use, such as swimming pools, tennis, exercise rooms, etc.
Therefore, by choosing to stay in such apartments, travelers can save on lodging expenses. That money they can then spend on experiencing other interesting things or exploring an additional city!
2. Privacy
Privacy is another reason why short stay apartments are gaining popularity with travelers, especially those of the younger generation. You'll not find a reception area or anything of that sort in these apartments, which means that no one keeps an eye on your movements. For the time that you occupy the room, you can expect to come and go as you wish. But it also means that you have to make arrangements with someone ahead of time to get your key, etc
3. Amenities
Short stay apartments offer most of the basic amenities that a traveler would need. And unlike in hotels, these amenities are typically available at no additional cost.
They normally include Wi-Fi, refrigerator, electric kettle, coffee maker, toaster, cookware, access to washer and dryer, etc.
4. Homey Environment
If you're looking for a homey environment when you travel, a homestay would probably be your best option.
But short stay apartments rank a close second. That is because you can come and go freely and have access to the kind of amenities you enjoy at home.
You are free to prepare breakfast, cook for yourself, make your own bed, do your own laundry and stay comfortably in privacy, just like you do back at home. Being able to do all this can surely add to the enjoyment of your travels.
5. Flexibility in Stay
Flexibility is another great feature of short stay apartments. Although the name implies that these apartments can be booked only for short periods of time, in reality, that’s not how it works.
Such apartments have been designed to meet short-term needs but when necessary, one can often extend one’s stay somewhat, or even arrange to stay for longer periods of time.
6. Spacious
Most short stay apartments offer rooms that are more spacious than an average hotel room. And let’s face it, with all the travel gear along you don't want a cramped room. Having more space makes people happier, more comfortable and more relaxed.
In all, there are a lot of reasons why short stay apartments are a great lodging option for travelers. The apartments are perfect for business as well as vacation travelers. They are usually located in many parts of the city, so that more often than not you can find an apartment in the location of your choice.
To get a perfect stay for your trip, you'll have to be clear about your priorities. If you’re looking for a luxurious stay then you may want to consider other lodging options. However, if you're on a budget and want to spend most of your money on meaningful experiences, you can comfortably stay at a short stay apartment.
If you’re taking a business trip for an extended period of time and don’t want to spend unnecessarily on your stay, consider living in a short stay apartment. It’s not just another lodging option for you, but can prove to be a home away from home!
Author’s Bio:Lysha works at Lalco Residency - Apartments In Mumbai For Short Stay and she loves her job. Helping clients and monitoring the progress of business strategies along with her leadership skills makes her perfect suit for Hospitality services. You can catch up with Lysha at Lalco Residency in Mumbai.
Disclosure: Gamesforlanguage.com and I have no business relationship with Lysha, Lalco Residency other than publishing Lysha's post, nor with the sites mentioned above: VRBO, WIMDU or Airbnb, other than having used and paid for their services in the past. See our Privacy Policyand Terms of Use for further details.
This post continues our European Travel 7 post From Sylt to Zealand. Before heading into Copenhagen, we wanted to explore the northern part of the island of Zealand. There was one castle in particular that interested us.
Kronborgslot
Kronborgslot, a 16th century castle, located at the very tip of Helsingør and overlooking the Øresund across to Sweden, may very well be Denmark's most famous castle. It's the castle that Shakespeare called Elsinore in his play Hamlet.
Since 1816, every year in August, and only interrupted by World War II, the Hamlet festival attracts not only thousands of visitors, but also the world's greatest actors. While we regretfully missed the festival, we were surprised how many names of actors we recognized in the Festival's “Hall of Fame”.
They include Sir Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh, Gustaf Gründgens,Sir John Gielgud, Michael Redgrave, Richard Burton as well as Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer, Kenneth Branagh, Jude Law, and other more recent ones.
Since the year 2000 Kronborg Castle has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has been called one of the most important Renaissance castles of northern Europe.
In 1574 King Frederick II started construction to transform the Krogen (the castle's original name) into a Renaissance castle, which was finished in 1585. A tour of the grounds and through the building let us appreciate its strategic location, as well as its significance as a sign of the power and wealth of King Frederick II.
When a fire destroyed a large part in 1629, King Christian IV had it rebuilt. Besieged and captured by the Swedes in 1658, the castle also lost many of its art treasures. For close to 150 years it was used to house the army and only in 1923, after a thorough renovation, it was opened to the public.
The Maritime Museum of Denmark
On our way from the parking lot to the Kronborg Castle, we came by what looked like, and indeed was a former dry dock: the Maritime Museum of Denmark. We have to admit that it wasn't on our museum list, although it should have been. As we learned from the website:
“In 2014 the museum was listed as one of The New York Times’ recommended ‘52 places to go in 2014’ and voted the best cultural building worldwide by archdaily.com – the world’s most visited architecture website. In October 2014, BBC made a list of the 8 greatest new museums in the world which featured the Maritime Museum of Denmark. In January 2015, National Geographic listed 10 structures that it recommended traveling to for the design alone, and the Maritime Museum of Denmark was one of them.”
The museum is not only an architectural delight. Being an avid sailor and fan of everything nautical, I probably enjoyed this visit even more than walking through any castle. I have been to many maritime museums, visited old sailing ships, destroyers, aircraft carriers, battle ships and submarines. But, never have I seen the maritime history and life on sea as comprehensively depicted and exhibited.
The whole experience was stunning. Walking down the sloped exhibition floors and taking in the various exhibits with great sound and video effects was informative and fascinating. (There is a discount if you visit both the Kronborg Castle and the Maritime Museum the same day.)
As we continued to explore the countryside of northern Zealand with its green pastures and little villages, we could not forgo visiting another important castle and museum.
Frederiksborgslot
Frederiksborgslotis another picture-perfect Danish Renaissance castle which also houses the Danish Museum of National History. From Kronborg Castle it's only a half hour drive (or 17 miles) to Hillerød where Frederiksborg Castle faces the town across a small lake.
King Frederick II acquired the original castle in 1560 and gave it its name. King Christian IV, in the early decades of the 17th century, substantially expanded and made it the largest Renaissance castle in Scandinavia. (You may remember from above that Christian IV was also responsible for rebuilding Kronborg Castle after a fire had destroyed a large part it.)
The castle was used as a main royal residence for the first 100 years. It later fell into disuse until Frederick VII began to occupy it again in 1848.
After a fire in 1859 destroyed much of the interior and roofs, its fate was uncertain, until Jacob Christian Jacobsen, the founder of the Carlsberg Breweries, restored it. In 1877, he proposed to make it the home of the Danish Museum of National History. A branch of the Carlsberg Foundation, to whom Jacobsen bequeathed his fortune, still runs the museum and castle today.
Our tour through the museum took us through several hundred years of Danish history from the Middle Ages to the 21st century.We could fully appreciate the size of castle property by looking from the castle across the lake to the Barock garden, with its terraces, trees, hedges, and fountains. (see picture)
We also became aware of an interesting tradition for choosing the names of Danish Kings, which started in the 16th century: After Christian II (1513 –1523) - and until Margrethe II became Queen in 1972 - Danish kings were called either Frederick or Christian. Curiously enough, no one could explain to us the tradition's origin.
And – a little more Scandinavian royal history – the son of Fredrick VIII (1906-1912), Prince Carl of Denmark, became one of the few elected monarchs in modern history. Norway recruited him and, King Haakon VII, he became the first king of Norway after the 1905 dissolution of Norway's union with Sweden.
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Frederiksborg Castle and the Museum of National History were just the first examples of philanthropic endeavors we encountered in Denmark. We saw several more in Copenhagen. And, the “Louisiana” belongs in that group as well. We had heard about the museum as a must see when in the Copenhagen area. Its name already intrigued us and we soon found out from the guide book:
“The name Louisiana, pleasant and lilting in Danish, has a curious story in its own right: the original villa (a 19th century country house) was named for its first owner's marriages to no fewer than three women named Louise.”
The Louisiana was already a different type of museum when Knud W. Jensen founded it and opened its doors in 1958. When we visited it now nearly 60 years later, the setting overlooking the Sound, was still amazing. The various galleries meander through the garden and sculpture park.
The architecture by Danish architects Vilhelm Wohlert and Jørgen Bo was clearly inspired by the German Bauhaus (a school founded by the architect Walter Gropius, in 1919 in Weimar). Jensen, we understood, was very much the third architect and he kept expanding and building until his death in 2000. The result is a structure that creates wonderful exhibition spaces for modern art collections of photography, paintings, sculptures, videos, etc.
The Giacometti Gallery with its many sculptures and reflections from the lake below is one of the highlights.There are works by Picasso and Warhol, Lichtenstein, as well as by Ai Weiwei, and Danish artists we were not familiar with.
Special exhibitions of international and Danish artists change periodically. During our visit we experienced the first major retrospective presentation of the controversial body and performance artist Marina Abramovic. Even if modern art is not your thing – experiencing the Louisiana should be on your Copenhagen itinerary.
(The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is located 25 miles north of Copenhagen. If you don't have a car: On the Danish State Railway (DSB), the Sound coastal route takes about 35 minutes from Copenhagen’s Central Station and 10 minutes from Helsingør. From Humlebæk Station, it is a 10-minute walk to the museum. You can buy e-tickets in advance on the site link above.)
Copenhagen
After traveling for over 10 days by car (from the Netherlands to Lüneburg and Sylt), we looked forward to staying in one place for a while. We had rented an apartment in Copenhagen and easily found it upon arrival.
Returning the rental car (and mailing back the mywebspot pocket WIFI, which had served us well on the road), gave us an opportunity to explore Copenhagen's transit system and the neighborhood of Fredericksberg, where our apartment was located.
The subway into town (and to the airport) was only a 4-minute walk away and we discovered that the M2 metro back to our apartment was not only driver-less, but ran like clockwork, every 2-6 minutes during the day (every 15-20 minutes at night).
The first two metro lines were completed between 2003 and 2007. A city loop is expected to open in 2019 and more extensions in the following years. The metro system supplements a very effective S-train rapid transit system, and a bus network, both of which we also used during our stay. The wonderful apartment – with modern Danish furniture - had WIFI, maps and city guides. We first familiarized ourselves a little more with the city's history.
A Little Copenhagen History
Getting its start as a Viking fishing village in the 10th century, Copenhagen became Denmark's capital in the 15th century. With a population of over 700,000, it's also the country's largest city today. And, it was again Christian IV, who between 1588 and 1648, was most responsible for Copenhagen's growth and building boom.
He initiated a number of building projects, including the Stock Exchange, the Rosenborg Slot and the district of Christianshavn (see later) with canals and ramparts.The city's fortifications, however, proved no match for the British attack in 1807 when most of the city was destroyed.
Nevertheless, after the war, and inspite of Denmark declaring bankruptcy in 1813, Copenhagen underwent a period of rebuilding and intense cultural activity, also known as the Danish Golden Age.
Nyhavn
Nyhavn (new harbor) was originally constructed in 1670 by Christian V, as a gateway from the sea to Kongens Nytorv (King's Square) to handle cargo and fishermen's catch.
Today with its colorful buildings, dockside cafes and restaurants looking onto classic sailing ships and pleasure boats, Nyhavn has become one of Copenhagen's top tourist spots, great for people watching or just enjoying the scenery.
Hans Christian Andersen, the famous Danish fairy tale writer lived here for over twenty years at Nyhavn, when the harbor side was still a sailor's delight.
I was especially intrigued by the sliding pedestrian/bicycle bridge ("Inderhavensbroen") which spans the harbor to Christianshavn. Having gone under many fixed and opening bridges during our canal travels in France and the Netherlands (see European Travels 3: Dutch Language and Canal Boating) I've never encountered such a design.
The bridge design is controversial to say the least. If you're interested, this article explains both the design and issues of the “Kissing Bridge”. I personally found it quite elegant and watched it open and close several times.
Hey Captain
Right below the “Kissing Bridge” we met the boat for our harbor cruise. (We saw on the website that the departure has now moved across to the Ofelia Plads.)
Rather than touring the harbor in one of the giant Canal Tour boats, we preferred the Hey Captain option with the yacht-club-type launch and a maximum of 12 guests (and including a complimentary drink).
Maybe because it was a mid-September Monday with rain in the forecast, but our tour included only one other guest from the US. So it was quite “private”.
Captain Mathias - who works as a ski instructor in South Tyrol during the winter – spoke excellent English and skillfully took us through the harbor. The tour went through the canal along Freetown Christiana (more about that below), the Frederiksholms Kanal by the Christiansborg Palace, etc. He interspersed his explanations of the historic sites with little gossip tidbits of the current life in Copenhagen.
From the water we had a wonderful view of many of the signature buildings on both sides: The spectacular new Opera House on the Christianshavn side, (see picture), the Royal Danish Playhouse just across on the city side, the “Black Diamond” as the modern waterfront extension of the Royal Library is called. As we sailed by we indeed saw the glass facade sparkling glass like a diamond.
We really enjoyed the very informative 60 minute tour.
Palaces and Museums
After having visited several castles and palaces during our travels already, we decided to skip the Rosenborg Slot and the Amalienborg Slot, the seat of the Royal family. As the flags were flying, we understood that the Queen was in residence and we witnessed the changing of the guard – enjoyed by school children and adults alike.
Two Museums we liked in particular:
The SMK (Statens Museum for Kunst), the National Gallery of Denmark, is Denmark's largest art museum and houses collections of mainly Danish (but also international) artists of the past seven centuries.
The original museum building of the 1890s has been expanded by a new addition in 1998 which holds the modern collection. When old and modern structures are joined (see picture) not everybody likes the result. But we did.
We also visited the David Collection, a fascinating collection of Islamic, European, and Danish Art. Housed in a building once occupied by the museum's founder, a prominent Copenhagen attorney, the extensive collection of Islamic Art is the most important one. It “encompasses exquisite decorative art from the 7th century to the mid-19th century from an area that extends from Spain in the west to China in the east, from Uzbekistan in the north to Yemen in the south.”
Bicycling and Segway
There are several ways you can do sightseeing in Copenhagen: In addition to typical bus tours, there are boat tours, kajak tours, bicycle tours and Segway tours and obviously – our preferred way, just walking.
We rented electric bicycles several times to explore the neighborhood of Frederiksberg where our apartment was located, as well as Christianshavn, (see below) and loved the ubiquitous bike paths. However, we at first shied away from doing so in the middle of the city.
Therefore we felt quite brave when we decided to sign up for a Segway tour downtown. We had always wanted to try out a Segway and now had an opportunity to do so.
After about 15 minutes of instruction and tryout in the company's offices and on the street, our group of 12 riders assembled to follow the guide. Through our helmet speaker, we heard his instructions and off we went onto the next bike path. As bikers dashed by us we made our way slowly but surely through the city.
Once at the harbor promenade in front of the spectacular Skuespilhuset, the Royal Danish Playhouse (see picture above), we all felt that we had mastered the most difficult part of the Segway trip. We circled around the Amalienborg courtyard (where we had been before) and zipped through the Kastellet, one of the best preserved star fortresses in Northern Europe.
Finally, we stopped at the “Lille Havfrue”, the Little Mermaid, for more pictures: Indeed, the Little Mermaid - as both our Boat Captain as well as our Segway Tour Guide stressed - must be the world's most overrated tourist attraction from any vantage point. But we still took a picture just like everybody else!
It was amazing how much distance we covered in 90 minutes and how much information we absorbed during that time.
Christianshavn
The boat tour had taken us through the canals of Christianshavn and our Captain had told us various stories about this part of Copenhagen. (Our Segway Tour did not go over the bridge.)
Developed in the early 17th century by Christian IV as part of the city's fortifications, and then as a merchants' town inspired by Dutch city planners, it became a working class neighborhood in the 20th Century with military housing.In the 70s it developed a bohemian reputation and became a favorite of students, hippies and artists.
When the military left the Christiania area, students called out the “Fristaden Christiania”. Drugs and crime became a problem in the 80s. We were told that police now stay mostly away and self-government by the resident tries to keep the peace.
While the many types of cannabis that are openly sold are technically illegal, the law is not enforced and the situation is tolerated. We bicycled through the Freetown on a Sunday morning. A sign at the entrance proclaimed: “You are now leaving the European Union”. Many stands that sold cannabis, colorful jewelry and clothes were just being set up.By midday the area was filled with families on a stroll, joggers, bicyclists and tourists like us.
We heard some noises coming from the partial and overturned hull of an old wooded vessel, right alongside the shore of the Freetown's “marina”, and so we stopped:A young man was busy cleaning out the inside. He was clearly stoned and explained that this was going to be his new home. He invited us to come and visit him once it was finished.
Tivoli Gardens
A visit to Copenhagen wouldn't be complete without a visit to Tivoli, the famous amusement park. Opened in 1843 by its founder Georg Carstensen, on land leased from King Christian VIII, it must have been a model for the Disney Parks over 100 years later.
We did not take any of the many offered rides on roller coasters, or other contraptions like the “Vertigo”, a looping plane ride, or the “Zamperla”, a giant swing a spinner with 4G forces, or even the newest “Fatamorgana”.
Leaving these to younger folks, we enjoyed walking around the gardens. We watched a ballet performance, listenend to a concert and had a delicious dinner in one of the numerous restaurants. In the evening, the many lights with the fireworks at the end created a magical atmosphere.
There are so many places to see and experience in Copenhagen, that even a week was not enough. You'll have to consult your travel guide to decide what to see and do.
If you have even less time than we did, this April 2018 New York Times article will give you some excellent suggestions: 36 Hours in Copenhagen We certainly enjoyed our time in Copenhagen and Denmark.
Bio: Ulrike & Peter Rettig are co-founders of Gamesforlanguage.com. They are lifelong language learners, growing up in several European countries before moving to Canada and the United States. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and leave any comments with contact.
The internet has made so many great things possible in our lives. One of them is the ease it has brought to the dissemination of useful information. Gone are those days when you had to travel to other parts of the world to discover things.
Yes, you can still use your local library to learn things. But even there, almost any form of knowledge will be at your fingertips as long as you can get access to the internet. And the internet also brought us electronic learning (or e-learning).
With it, you don’t need to move to San Francisco to get a degree at Stanford University. You can apply for courses online!
E-Learning is applicable to just about anything you need to learn. As long as there is a teacher and a learner, the internet is an able medium of communication.
E-Learning Saves Money and Time
E-Learning has many advantages over conventional methods of learning. To start with, it saves cost.
You can take courses that are being taught anywhere in the world without leaving your home. This saves you a lot of money on transportation and hotel/hostel bills.
In addition, you’re also not constrained by time as most online courses are asynchronous, which means that they are not ongoing in real time. You can access them whenever you want.But do note that there are also synchronous courses where the teacher and the student are at different devices at the same time.
As the world is fast becoming a global village, traditions are getting interwoven. More people are learning to speak more than one language.
E-Language Learning
And with e-Learning, you can learn a foreign language without even visiting the country. There are many online platforms that offer training on different languages and in a wide variety of formats.
It doesn’t matter if you prefer learning by talking with a native speaker or you would like to start with learning the alphabets and then sentence structure. Whichever your preference, you’ll find an e-Learning platform that caters to it.
Some language learning platforms take even more interesting approaches like building in interactive games and simulations in their training process. This method is referred to as gamification.
It is fast gaining in popularity because research shows that interactive games help learners retain information up to 10 times better.
The education site Udemy alone has well over 700 languages courses focused on different aspects of linguistics, and language acquisition using different models of learning.
E-Language Fluency
Another approach is using social media. In this case, a platform is created where people who speak languages fluently come together. Take for instance, a Japanese CEO who is trying to polish his spoken English. He registers on this platform as does a native US English speaker. The platform links them so they can make video calls at their convenience and interact in English.
This helps people communicate with native speakers in the language they are interested in learning, thereby helping them speed up their proficiency. E-Learning has made the acquisition of skill more affordable and accessible. It’s another feather in the cap for human ingenuity and has come to stay.
It will only grow bigger, better and more useful as you will see from the infographics below.
Bio:Tarun Reddy is Digital Marketing Manager at 16best.net, expert in Market Research, SEO, Inbound marketing, content marketing, and lead generation.
Disclosure: Gamesforlanguage.com has no business relationship with 16best.net or Tarun Reddy other than publishing Tarun's article and infographics.
You're learning a new language. You've managed to get a good start, but now you notice that you're struggling to continue.
The learning is just not going smoothly. You start skipping a day here and there, then you miss a week or so. Sorting papers seems so much more important than learning and practicing 15 minutes or so in your new language.
Language Learner’s Block
Perhaps what you have is Language Learner’s Block. In many ways it resembles what we call Writer's Block. Borrowing and adapting a definition: Language Learner’s Block “is the condition whereby a language learner cannot summon up the will and energy to continue learning a foreign language.” (From Fiction Writers’ Mentor)
There are all kinds of reasons for feeling blocked. A major reason is lack of confidence in yourself as a language learner. Constant self criticism may be sapping your motivation.
Maybe it's also frustration with your slow learning progress. You wanted to become fluent - in how many days, weeks, or months?
Or you feel stressed because of too may other commitments. But even people with a busy schedule manage to add a daily item they really want to do. I'm sure you've heard people say: “If you want to get a job done, find a busy person to do it”. So, being busy is not a good reason to stop learning a language you really want to learn.
A language learner's block is not foreign to me. I've been there a few times. But I've also found ways to keep going nevertheless. Here are a few practical ideas to help you too overcome your Language Learner’s Block.
Pick the one(s) that could work for you NOW. Once you're back in your routine, your confidence and motivation will pick up again, and you can try out some others later. Except for #1 - which is worth looking at anyhow from time to time - the other 19 are in no particular order.
20 Practical Tips
1. Reassess. Before you tackle the obstacles that keep you from continuing with your language, as yourself a few questions. Why are you learning your new language? Are you planning a trip? Do you need it for your career or move to a new country? Are you learning your language as a longer-term hobby? Which of the four skills - reading, listening/comprehension, speaking, writing - will be most useful to you? Which one to practice more?
2. Limit your practice time. When Promise yourself that you'll do 5 minutes a day as a starter. When you've done your 5 minutes, stop. If you keep up this mini-routine even for a couple of weeks, you'll be on your way to creating a language learning habit. It's not how long you practice, it's doing it on a regular basis.
3. Set a daily reminder. Do this for whatever language task you've chosen. Most online programs have that option. Or, if you're like me, put the reminder on your short daily "to do" list and check it off when you're done. Doing something every day creates momentum.
4. Do small tasks. If you're using a program, do short lessons. If you're learning vocabulary, limit the number of words you memorize. If you're listening to a podcast, do the same one several times. Doing small tasks, but doing them every day really adds up to big results.
5. Set up your next task. When you're done for the day, write down a small task for the new material you'll want to tackle next. That'll make it easier for you to get right into it the next day.
6. Reward yourself. When you reach a small milestone - let's say 10 days in a row - treat yourself to something you enjoy. People have different ideas of a "reward", but for me a new ebook, listening to a song, a piece of chocolate, watching a TV show, all work well.
7. Write a journal. A sentence a day in your target language is great way to start a journal. Just write the way you would talk, and don't worry about making mistakes. No one's going to see it. With time, you'll become familiar with certain phrases and grammar patterns.
8. Try things out.Don't worry about making mistakes. Remember that your native language will interfere powerfully when you speak a foreign language. It takes time to become familiar with a new language. Focus on communicating rather than perfection.
9. Listen to songs. Add some fun to your language learning and treat it as a hobby. Songs are a great way to internalize sounds and vocabulary. First listen to a song by following the text, then listen again and again. Try not to translate as you listen. Just focus on the meaning. (Language Zen is a great option if you'd like to learn with Spanish songs!)
10. Watch movies. For your first movies, you'll probably want to see English subtitles. Then, when you're ready, start watching with subtitles in your target language. Again, try not to translate. You'll get many clues to the meaning just from the images themselves.
11. Read easy stories. A good start may be the "easy readers" which include vocabulary and translations of the language you want to learn. (We like Olly Richard's Short Stories, which you can also get with audios.)
12. Find new resources. Adding or switching resources can give you fresh ideas and new energy. Search the internet for materials available in the language you're learning. Join a language forum such as Polyglots, or My Polyglot, etc. to get recommendations from other members. Check out your library, listen to foreign books on Audible, try out a new language app, etc.
13. Add recall. It's better to spend a little time recalling what you've just learned than to cram in more new information. Also, keep in mind, recalling new information from time to time (spaced repetition) will put it into your long-term memory.
14. Memorize a short dialogue. Then, record yourself and play back the dialogue. This also works for practicing a telephone conversation in your target language. Tell yourself you'll just have to get used to hearing yourself speak in the language you're learning.
15. Practice pronunciation.Get a list and the audio of basic expressions and "listen and repeat" them many times. Record yourself and compare your pronunciation to that of the native speaker. Next time you converse in your target language, you'll be happy you did.
16. Work on Fluency. One way to improve your fluency is to listen regularly to podcasts in your target language. Or play streamed radio. Do this kind of listening practice whenever you're cooking, walking, exercising, etc. For real fluency, you need to internalize the intonation and rhythm of your new language, and this is a good way to do it.
17. Focus on practical phrases. Mastering greetings and basic conversational phrases is essential in any case. It's especially helpful for travels. If you're going to Paris for a week, it won't be that important to master the subjunctive.
18. Socialize. Language is a fantastic tool for socializing. Find a meetup group, or join an online community to start using your new language to communicate. Rattling off phrases you memorized is very different from the dynamic back-and-forth of a conversation. Believe me, it's really exciting to be able to hold your own in another language.
19. Tap into your inner actor. The well-known psycholinguist François Grosjean (author of the blog “Life as a Bilingual”) suggests that we don't really change personalities when we change languages. He states: "Different contexts and domains trigger different impressions, attitudes and behaviors. What is taken as a personality shift due to a change of language may have little, if anything, to do with language itself."
But, a different language will often put you into new and different situations, which in turn may change your attitudes and feelings. So, when speaking Italian, become Italian. Add Italian voice drama and characteristic gestures. Tap into your inner actor and explore new ways to express yourself.
20. Work on your attitude. It's easy to say: "Ah, I'll never get it. When I start talking with someone in my target language, my brain freezes up." Scratch those sentences from your inner vocabulary. Instead, tell yourself: "Every time I use my second language, I become more familiar with it, and my brain benefits."
Looking back at my own experience: I was born in Austria and my native language is German. But when I was nine, my family moved to the Netherlands. Since I attended a local school there, I had to learn Dutch pronto.
Two years later, we emigrated to Canada and this time I had to learn English fast. During high school and college, I added French. Much later, I started learning Italian and Spanish, and now I'm working on Danish, Swedish and Portuguese. Most recently, I've started dabbling in Finnish.
Each stage of my life and each language has confronted me with challenges that I've needed to deal with. I've used each of the above practical ideas at some point in my language learning life. I'd love to hear what works for you.
Bio: Ulrike Rettig is the co-founder of GamesforLanguage.com. She is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, the Netherlands, and Canada. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram, and leave any comments with contact or below.
We all know that kids love to play. In fact, most, if not all of their learning in their early years occurs during play.
So it's not surprising that educational games – especially those on kids' tablets, smart phones, etc. are pouring into the market place.
These games combine playing with targeted learning. They include educational topics from geography, math, spelling, science, to native and foreign languages.
There are numerous audio, video, and other “toy based” games and apps, which children play in their native language.
With these, they enhance word recognition, pronunciation, spelling, and writing.
And, games don't have to be on a laptop or tablet. There are blocks with numbers or letters; there are playing cards and board games like KLOO; and there are more and more battery operated toys that combine colors, movements, music, and language sounds into interactive learning centers for young children.
Kids play native and foreign language games - not because it helps them to better communicate with their parents, siblings, and peers - but because they provide interactive fun.
Language games teach them basic vocabulary, often with funny pictures, cute sound effects, and “rewards” for getting it right.
Language Benefits for Younger and Older Adults
In contrast to children, adults typically have a specific plan or need for the particular foreign language they are learning.
Younger adults will learn another language to enhance their career options, or because of friends, family connections, etc. They have to develop the discipline and learning habits to keep going in the midst of work and family commitments and time constraints.
The reasons older adults learn a new language often relate to family, new partners or travels. Many are also becoming aware of new research findings, which show the benefits of language learning for the older brain.
The strongest evidence of such benefits comes from a decades-long study of 853 Scottish people, first tested in 1947 at age 11, and then retested in 2008-2010.
Published in the Annals of Neurology in 2014, the study, titled Does Bilingualism Influence Cognitive Aging, the authors discuss the “protective effect of bilingualism against age-related cognitive decline.”
While the study does not make for easy reading, a number of key findings caught my attention:
The protective effects are not explained by other variables such as gender, socioeconomic status, or immigration.
The benefits appear to be independent of childhood intelligence (CI).
Knowing 3 or more languages produced stronger effects than knowing 2.
Little difference was found between active and passive bilinguals.
What I found especially interesting was the discussion of the study's limitations at the end of the article:
"Our study has limitations. The knowledge of language was defined by a questionnaire, not proficiency. Only few participants acquired their second language before age 11 years, so we could not study the classical cases of parallel, perfect, early acquisition of both languages. However, this limitation is also a strength. Millions of people across the world acquire their second language later in life: in school, university, or work, or through migration or marriage to a member of another linguistic community. Many never reach native-like perfection. For this population, our results are particularly relevant; bilingualism in its broad definition, even if acquired in adulthood, might have beneficial effects on cognition independent of CI (childhood Intelligence)."
Think about it. You don't even have to speak another language perfectly to acquire the benefits later in life.
This is good news for the many immigrants who have to flee their home countries.
But it's also good news for anybody who is learning another language but may never speak it fluently.
Your brain benefits from your learning effort anyway.
Adults Learning With Language Games
When we started learning Italian in our early sixties and Spanish a few years later, language learning games and gamified language courses or apps were not yet available. This was January 2011.
We found the The Rosetta Stone courses boring.
Duolingo didn't launch until November 2011 (see some of our Duolingo and Rosetta Stone Reviews) and we felt that Language Games could make learning and practicing a foreign language more fun.
We know from personal experience (and many other language enthusiasts agree) that the key to learning another language is regular - even daily - exposure to the new language.
Short, daily stints are fine. In fact, practicing each day for 20 minutes is much more effective than once a week for 2 hours or more.
But daily practice with boring lessons is hardly a very motivating proposition for a busy adult.
On the other hand, listening to a story sequel in another language appealed to us.
We've always used “easy readers” with accompanying vocabulary or translations. (For example, we love Olly Richard's Short Stories, which are also available as audio books.)
However, for anyone with no or little background in the new language, we felt that interactive “comprehensible input” was needed. What better way than learning and practicing new vocabulary with language games?
That was our original idea for GamesforLanguage: Learning and practicing a new language “playfully”, or learning with games! Our site went live in September 2011.
Later we added Podcasts of the stories as well as Quick Language Games – over 200 by now – which only take 2-3 minutes to play,
Do we think that one can become fluent in a new language with our Gamesforlanguage courses?
No, we do not.
Becoming fluent requires much more listening and speaking practice than our courses - and most other online programs and apps – provide.
But, if our free courses can engage adults to play just one 15-20 minute travel-story lesson a day for 30 days and more - that may be the start of a learning habit.
The next steps would be to continue with reading and listening to other stories and to start speaking in the language you're learning.
More and more new “senior” adults, the “baby boomers”, are computer- and tablet-literate.
They are beginning to realize that learning a second or third language opens up social opportunities. Plus, they are becoming aware of the benefits another language has for the aging brain.
As the above quoted study shows:
You don't have to speak another language perfectly to acquire the benefits at any time in your life.
So why not start today and give your brain a good workout!
Bio: Peter Rettig is the co-founder of Gamesforlanguage.com. He is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram, and leave any comments with contact.
Stories play an important role in our lives. Much of our communication with others is through stories. By exchanging stories with others, we connect with them.
Stories interest us. They tell us about the struggles and achievements of others and help us create our own identity. They are a way of making sense of our lives.
Stories are also tools for processing and remembering information. Narratives help us structure and organize content and give meaning to facts.
In a story, words come up again and again, sometimes in various contexts. Having the context of a story, you can often guess the meaning of new words. Especially when words show up several times in different sentences and combinations, their meaning becomes more accessible.
Each time you see a particular word again, it becomes more solidly lodged in your memory. Guessing the meaning of words from the context of a situation is a useful skill. If we practice it, we become better at it - something that helps enormously when learning a language.
Yes, you can learn words in a list by repeating and recalling them often enough. But there's a "boring" factor attached to that. Its also frustrating to keep forgetting words repeatingbecause we don't connect them to a memorable context.
A list of words is pure memorization. The words stand in a vacuum. Besides, once you've memorized a word in your new language, you still have to understand and learn how to use it. That happens when you recognize that particular word in context. For that a story is perfect.
Can you learn new vocabulary you going through a series of unrelated sentences? Yes, that can be fun for a while. Each sentence gives you a limited context, which is helpful. But, it's a different kind of challenge for your brain from learning with a story.
The core of Duolingo courses is to translate sentences. For me, the random (often weird) sentences are like "language sudoku".But I don't use such sentences for communication. For example, I had to puzzle out the following sentence in Danish:Hun elsker at ve bjørnen lide. (She loves to see the bear suffer.)I'll never use this sentence in real life.
So, why do I prefer learning vocabulary with stories (rather than with word lists or series of sentences)? I just find that seeing and hearing words and phrases in the context of a narrative helps me remember them. I can picture a situation or an event and that will trigger my memory.
2. Stories Make Grammar Intuitive
Grammar is the glue that holds language together. But for most people grammar rules are not that memorable. I'm not at all opposed to learning grammar. I taught college German for a number of years and the textbooks I used had plenty of grammar.
But that's not what got my students excited. What they loved was to use German as much as possible and figure out patterns. When I learn a new language, I feel the same way. I look up a grammar issue only when I want to figure out how the language works.
When I started with Danish, I quickly understood that there are two noun genders (common and neutral) and that the definite article is normally attached to the end of the noun (rather than stand in front of it).
But understanding a grammar rule is quite different from really knowing how it works.
It took me some time to internalize that a Danish word like "katten" means "the cat" and not "cats" (whereas in German "die Katze" multiplies to "die Katzen").
As we become more and more familiar with a language, we get good at recognizing such "grammar elements". Not to forget, though, that seeing a grammar pattern is a different skill from hearing it.
When we communicate, we use a variety of sentences. Each is made up of various grammar elements. Depending on our message or narrative, we resort to simple statements, questions, requests, commands, and if necessary, different kinds of complex sentences. The sentences are, of course, not in a random sequence. They are connected in a meaningful way.
Conjunctions and other connecting words are important elements in a narrative. Beyond "and" and "but", there are other useful words and phrases that link actions, events, ideas, etc.To name but a few in English: "if, because, however, in case, in spite of, even, even though, neither nor".
Stories are a good tool for understanding the different ways actions and ideas connect. By paying attention to how a narrative unfolds, we train our mind to pick up and internalize such grammar clues.
Beyond gender, case, and connecting words, there are other grammar elements in a language that carry meaning. Just think of pronouns, including formal and familiar forms of address, prepositions, and negation.
Just as you can guess the meaning of words, you can also internalize grammar patterns from the context of a story. The more you read and listen to stories, the more you become aware of the characteristic patterns of the language.
3. Stories Teach You About Present, Past and Future
Drilling verb forms is always quite boring, and then you still have to learn how to apply them. In some languages this can get pretty complicated. When, for example, do you use the simple past versus the present perfect? Not to mention the conditional, or the subjunctive mood.
Yes there are rules. But they don't help much unless you've already internalized some verb patterns in a meaningful context.Stories help. They move back and forth easily between present, past and future actions and events.
Context provides you with various time markers and clues. As you follow a story, you remember earlier events or what was said previously and how this fits into the present situation, etc. You also notice how future events are anticipated and talked about.
Your brain is constantly figuring out what's going on, the causality of events, when something happened in the past, or what future possibilities are triggered by present actions.
That's what our brain does in everyday life: We remember thoughts and actions, we make decisions about what actions to take, and conjecture about the future. Why not practice doing this in the language we're learning?
4. Stories Help You to Stop Translating
People often ask me: How do you stop translating when you hear, read or speak another language? Yes, it's a dilemma. When you're beginner at your target language, you need to know what words and expressions mean in your native language. Pictures can help. But learning a language just with pictures doesn't get you very far.
So, in my mind it's okay to build one's basic vocabulary with translations as they are needed. But it's easy to get into the habit of translating everything. That's where stories come in. They can teach you to stop translating. Stories (even brief anecdotes) have a narrative sequence with meaning.
At first you may need some help with translation, but the meaning itself will stay in your mind. So, by listening to a story several times, you can train yourself to get the meaning without translation. By doing this often enough, you can create a new habit: understand what you see and hear without translating it.
I'm currently listening to Luca Lampariello's travel stories in Italian on LingQ to keep up my Italian. (You may be able to listen to his Viaggio in Russia if you register for free on LingQ).
Luca reads the stories himself and his natural speed is very fast. So fast, in fact, that there's no way I can do any translation at all. While my Italian is good enough that I don't have to look up many words, this is not the case with Danish.
Listening to Danish stories on LingQ, I do read through the text one time (after listening a couple of times) and click on any words I don't know. But then I listen to the story several more times and make a point of not translating. Each time I understand the story better just by hearing it. As with any skill, you have to practice, and with regular practice you get better.
5. Stories are a Creative Tool You Can Individualize
Stories give you a lot of material to work with as you're learning a new language. You can create your own stories in a target-language journal. Make up stories or write about thoughts, experiences, or encounters in your daily life.
Stories for language learning have become very popular. You can find stories for various levels and in many languages (on Amazon, on Pinterest, on LingQ, etc.).
Take a simple story and retell it from another point of view (first- or third-person), with other details (a different setting, place, people etc.), or change the time (from past to present). Tell the story aloud or write it out. Brave souls can make a video of themselves and post it in a social media language group.
I used stories a lot to teach our sons German. When they were very young, I recorded little stories I made up and played them when the boys were falling asleep at night.
When they were a little older, I read stories to them in English, with certain words and phrases repeated in German. Later, I read stories to them, and translated every sentence into German.
Finally, I just used German, or we played German stories in the car: Tim und Struppi (Tintin), Asterix und Obelix, or the popular stories of Enyd Blyton: Fünf Freunde (the "Famous Five" series).
For ourselves as adult learners, we had another idea. We love to travel, and especially like traveling in a country where we know the language. Because we were eager to spend time in Italy and Spain, we wanted to learn Italian and Spanish.
To get us started, one of our sons set up a site for us, which we called GamesforLanguage. Together with a team of native speakers, we created simple, gamified travel stories. These we then used to learn our two new languages.
It's been great to combine language learning with travel. Our Spanish course writer and speaker lives near Seville. We had found him online.
Once we had finished our Spanish story and we had used it for learning and practicing Spanish, we traveled to Barcelona and Seville. We stayed in both cities for a month. And we met our story writer in Seville in person, over a wonderful lunch of special local dishes.
We love to tell our story of why and how we created GamesforLanguage. It works in every language that we know. What is your story?
Bio: Ulrike Rettig is the co-founder of GamesforLanguage.com. She is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, the Netherlands, and Canada. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram, and leave any comments with contact or below.
After a few days on the North Frisian island of Sylt (see also European Travels 6 – From Lüneburg to Sylt), it was time to move on and head north to Denmark and its largest island, Sjælland, or Zealand.
(We were going to fly home from Copenhagen. Our travel planning would have been greatly facilitated by a new service we just learned about: Airwander. We'll be sure to use them on our next trip with multi-day layovers or multiple flight legs!)
Readers of a previous post may recall that we had begun to learn Danish a few months earlier with Duolingo and Pimsleur Language Programs. We were, however, under no illusion that we could speak Danish fluently.
A Little Recent Danish History
Travels often inspire curiosity about a country's history. Also for us. From the historic town of Westerland on Sylt, we took the car train shuttle back to Niebüll on the German mainland.
(We also continued to really appreciate our pocket WIFI, mywebspot,which allowed us to make our ferry, B&B and hotel reservations from our car.)
From the German mainland, we made our way north to cross the German-Danish border. As with most other inner European borders, there are no longer any check points. Road signs with different coloring will let you know, in case you missed the large border sign, that you are now in Denmark.
Still, we were surprised that there were no border controls, as Denmark had reinforced its borders with Germany a few years ago to stop the inflow of illegal goods and immigrants.
Denmark applied to join the “European Economic Community” (EEC), the predecessor of the EU, in 1961, shortly after the UK had done so. But, the veto of then President Charles de Gaulle in 1963 against the UK's membership affected Denmark as well.
With the UK being Denmark's main customer for its agricultural products, Denmark did not want to join without the UK. After more negotiations and with a new French President, both the UK and Denmark (as well as Ireland) finally joined the EEC in 1973.
Danes are somewhat “reluctant” Europeans. Denmark still uses the krone (crown) as its currency and has not accepted the euro.
Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands are probably the three countries most affected by Brexit as they have been heavily dependent on trade with the UK. However, as we learned during our trip to Denmark, there are currently no plans for Denmark to follow the UK's example.
Ferry from Fynshav to Bøjden
We slowly made our way on excellent roads through the Danish countryside toward the town of Fynshav at the Lillebaelt-Arhus Bugt.
As we didn't have any Danish kroner, we were looking for an ATM. This gave us our first opportunity to practice our Danish by asking for directions to a bank.
Ulrike was therefore quite pleased, when a woman in Augustenborg, whom she asked for directions to a bank ATM, answered in Danish. Not surprisingly though, she also experienced the “beginner's conundrum”: When the answer came back in rapid-fire Danish, she was lost.
But she persisted. And when the woman switched to English, Ulrike just asked her to continue in Danish and to slow down. We indeed found the bank with an ATM and now had Danish kroner.
Even though many Danes speak English, they'll love you for trying to use Danish at the start of any conversation. So before you go, learn greetings and some basic phrases. Here's a short list: (To learn how to pronounce them, try Memrise.)
Basic Danish Phrases
• Goddag/Hej - Good day/Hi • Godmorgen - Good morning • Vær så venlig - Please • Tak - Thanks • Ja/Nej - Yes/No • Undskyld mig - Excuse me (to get attention) • Jeg forstår ikke. - I don't understand. • Jeg taler ikke godt dansk. - I don't speak Danish well. • Taler du engelsk? - Do you speak English? • Farvel - Goodbye
The 45-minute ferry crossing from the town of Fynshav to Fyn (Funen), the second largest Danish island, was uneventful. We enjoyed hearing Danish spoken all around us and tried some “Danish pastry”, which in Denmark is called "wienerbrød" (Vienna bread). Was it a Viennese pastry chef who brought pastries to Denmark?
In Bøjden (on Fyn) we found the B&B we had reserved: a Danish farmhouse which had been converted by a Dutch woman into a cozy Bed and Breakfast residence. She recommended that we forgo a visit to Odensee, the island's largest city. Instead, she suggested that we visit the town of Faaborg, the Valdemars Slot on the island of Tåsinge in the south, and the town of Nyborg to the north.
Faaborg
Faaborg (or Fåborg), just a 15-minute drive from Bøjden is a picturesque little town of about 7,000 people.(see Bell tower) It has an interesting history.The town celebrated its 775th anniversary in 2004 and thereby the year in which King Valdemar II gave Faaborg (and a good portion of the south of Fyn) as a wedding gift to his daughter-in-law, Eleanor of Portugal.
One of the finest buildings in town, “Plougs Gaard” was built in 1790 by Jesper Ploug, who reportedly made his fortune in shipping during the American War of Independence.
Once an important harbor for trading with Sweden and Norway and later with England and Germany, services and tourism are now the town's dominant industries.
While commercial and fishing traffic in the harbor have decreased, we were told that over 15,000 pleasure boats, vintage ships and yachts of all sizes visit the port each year. There is also regular ferry service to the adjacent islands of Søby, Avernakø, Bjørnø and Lyø.
During this second week of September, there were few tourists who, like us, wandered through the narrow streets and admired the historic mansions and town houses.
We had an excellent dinner in Det Hvide Pakhus, right at the harbor and pleasure boat marina. The cheerful waitress explained that after schools start in early September tourist traffic drops off significantly. We were surprised, however, how quickly the large restaurant filled up during the early evening hours. It's obviously popular with locals.
Valdemars Slot
The next day, we drove to Valdemars Slot(Valdemar's) on the nearby island of Tåsinge. We arrived during a rain storm. After buying our tickets in the gift shop located outside the castle, we walked up the stairs to the main doors. (see picture)
We left our raincoats and umbrella in the entrance hall and not seeing any other visitors, personnel or guards, we went ahead and followed the visit schedule outlined in the little guide book we had received. While the outside architecture is not as impressive as some of the other Danish castles, the castle's interior provides a unique experience.
As the guide book notes: “Valdemar's Castle is a special kind of museum. The visitor will find no impeding ropes surrounding valuable objects of art and old furniture, and small things are not placed in exhibition cases. We want everything to be seen in its proper place and so – we believe – the special air and atmosphere of the house will manifest itself to the visitor. Some rooms are decorated in such a way that in spite of the years passed one might feel that the owner has just left....”
Indeed, in the various rooms recent photos of the current owners were on display. It reinforced our feeling that the owners were still living in the castle from time to time.
The guide also explains: “The castle is private property, and sole owner today is Alexander Fleming, 12th generation of the Juel dynasty, son of Caroline Fleming, born Caroline Juel-Nrockdorff, who descends in direct line from naval hero Niels Juel. Valdemar's Castle has been open to the public since 1974. It is still used as a private home by the owner and family.”
If you have never heard of Niels Juel, you are not alone. Neither had we. But the history is quite interesting:
History of the Castle
The original castle was built in the years 1639 to 1644 by the Danish King Christian IV for his son, Count Valdemar Christian (thus the name!) However, Valdemar never lived in the castle. Seeking adventure abroad, he died on the battlefield in Poland in 1656.
During the war with Sweden (1657-60), the castle was occupied and badly damaged. When Admiral Niels Juel defeated the Swedish in the famous sea battle in the Bay of Køge, he also captured a large number of Swedish ships. This entitled him to one-tenth of the value of the ships – an amount the Danish King was unable to pay to his Admiral.
Instead, the Danish King handed over the crown lands of Tåsinge, including the castle, to Niels Juel. The Admiral not only substantially renovated the castle, but added gatehouses, the coach and stable wings and a graceful tea pavilion at the end of an artificial pond. The aerial photo shows it all.
Castle Tour
We enjoyed a leisurely walk through the many open rooms, The King's Room with many portraits of the Danish kings, the Empress Room, named after the beautiful portrait of Empress Eugenie of France, the bedrooms, guestrooms, and others. It was also interesting to see the photos of current family members and royal visitors. What was especially notable was the lack of any guards (though there were cameras).
While we were walking through the various rooms, over old wood floors and antique carpets, we suddenly noticed that other visitors were wearing blue protective covers over their shoes. We realized we had missed the sign and the bin with the covers in our eagerness to start the tour. But nobody had stopped or admonished us, so we quickly corrected our oversight.
We visited Valdemars Slot on a rainy weekday and saw few other visitors. But on better days, the castle also seems to attract families who can rent bikes, Segways, kayaks, or go to the nearby beach.
As we toured the castle and learned about the Danish monarchy, we also became aware of a Danish curiosity: Beginning in the 16th century, after Christian II was deposed in 1523, all Danish kings were named either Frederick or Christian – until 1972, when for the first time a woman, Margrethe II, daughter of King Frederick IX, became Queen.
Nyborg
Our next stop was Nyborg, which is located on the east side of Fyn. Noborg, today a town of about 16,000 inhabitants, housed the “Danehoffet”, the country's legislative and judicial assembly from 1183 to 1413.
In the 17th century, Nyborg was one of only three fortified towns in Denmark (together with Frederica and Copenhagen).
Nyborg Castleis considered one of the most important heritage monuments from Denmark's Middle Ages.We toured the museum museum of the castle and found ourselves carried back in time.
A lively market in the middle of town with Danish folk musicians on Saturday morning started a medieval weekend with archers and jousting. (see picture)
We also visited the Nyborg's Historical Museum, which encloses the Borgmestergåarden (Mayor's Yard) with its distinctive red painted half-timbered buildings.
Walking on the uneven floors of this well-preserved merchant house, we felt we were back in the 17th century. In one of the workshops we watched a blacksmith at his trade.
The Storebaelt Bridge
Suspension bridges have always fascinated me. So, I was excited when a few days later, we crossed from Fyn to the island of Zealand (Sjaelland) on the Storebaelt Bridge (the Great Belt Bridge).
With a main span of 1,624 meters (5,328 feet), it's the world's third-longest suspension bridge. Only the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge in Japan with 1,991 meters and the Xihoumen Bridge in China with 1,650 meters are longer.
The total distance between the two islands and length of the bridge is about 18 km or 11 miles, and we were driving across on a beautiful blue-sky September day.
The Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde
Once across the Great Belt Bridge, we were on the island of Zealand, the largest Danish Island. It didn't take us much more than an hour to reach Roskilde.
During a Hurtigruten cruise along the Norwegian coastline a few years ago, we had learned much about the Vikings. While one often associates Norwegians (and Swedes) with the Vikings, the Danes were certainly a key member of the Viking's Scandinavian homeland.
We visited the wonderful Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, just when one of the Viking longboats returned from an outing. (see picture) The museum owns five “Skuldelev” which were built in the museum'sworkshop with copies of Viking age tools and corresponding materials and techniques.
The reconstructions are based on hull shapes of ships that have been found but the museum also cautions that they are not “definitive truths”. They represent “suggestions on how the ships may have looked 1,000 years ago.” We only regret that we didn't have the opportunity to join one of those Viking ship's outings.
Now a business and educational center with a population of about 50,000 people, Roskilde then was the hub of the Viking land and sea routes 1,000 years ago. And, from the 11th to the 15th century it was the country's capital.
In the late afternoon sun, we lingered at a café on the grand square of Roskilde and soaked up the atmosphere of this historic town.
There were more sights to explore on Zealand before heading to Copenhagen, but we'll report about them in a future post.
Bio: Peter Rettig is the co-founder of Gamesforlanguage.com. He is a lifelong language learner, growing up in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and leave any comments with contact or below.
Several years ago we experienced the Northern Lights when we visited Norway in September. We took a Hurtigruten Ferry from Bergen to Kirkenes.
Our ship, Kong Harald, stopped at various towns along the way, including Ålesund, Trondheim, Tromsø, to finally reach Kirkenes, a town right on the Russian border.
When we crossed the Arctic Circle, we all got a handful of ice down our backs as a gesture of respect to Neptune. That night, the sky lit up with a beautiful play of northern lights.
It was Galileo Galilei who coined the term "Aurora Borealis" in 1619 after Aurora, the Roman goddess of morning.
While he was wrong that sunlight reflected from the atmosphere would cause the streaks of light, the term, or a slight variation of the Latin original, is still used in Romance languages:
Northern lights (there are also "Southern lights") develop when electrically charged particles from the sun - a "solar wind" collide with the gases contained in the earth's atmosphere, especially nitrogen and oxygen.
Some of you would also like to experience these spectacular displays of nature, perhaps. We are therefore happy that Saumya Tiwari describes seven options for you below:
Where to Find Northern Lights?
The Northern Lights are one of the biggest attractions in Northern Europe. It is natural to regard them as a significant nature’s wonder.
People from around the globe flock to see their glory and beauty from August to March every year depending on the place you’re visiting to witness them.
Also known as Aurora Borealis or the polar lights, this scientific miracle is, if not one of the seven wonders of the world, definitely the eighth.
There are several ways to experience the Northern Lights and bask in the surreal beauty of that region. Let’s dive right in and check out some of the best ways to witness the Northern Lights this year to get a complete experience!
1. Swedish Ice Hotel
The Swedish Ice Hotel is an attraction in itself and a mark of great man-made excellence.
It is constructed every year from scratch and is open for guests from mid-December till March end.
The itinerary of the several tours and trips offered by the hotel also includes a trip to the Aurora Zone to witness this unbelievable spectacle.
In Swedish, "northern lights" is "norrsken".
2. Canadian Snowmobiling
Another way to experience the Northern Lights is by traveling to the Northwest Territories and finding some warmth in the frozen landscapes there.
Between the months of December and April, you can go on a snowmobiling voyage across the Great Slave Lake that is totally frozen during these months. You can rent a remote cabin to see the polar lights from there.
You can also arrive at the Blatchford Lake Lodge by a quick 30-minute seaplane ride to enjoy several activities like ice-fishing and snowshoeing in addition to watching the Northern Lights.
3. City Tour in Iceland
Iceland has a bustling and busy city life that presents a lot of exploration opportunities for the tourists.
You can take a package trip to Reykjavik that accommodates you in a four-star hotel. This package includes the Northern Lights.
The hotel takes the guests out on an excursion to witness the Aurora in a super jeep. This natural display can be witnessed by this way between October 1 and April 8.
In Icelandic, "northern lights" is "nor∂urljós".
4. Norwegian Voyage
How would you feel about not just witnessing the Northern Lights but also learning all there is to know about it?
Hurtigruten, who is a Scandinavian cruise specialist takes you on an Astronomical Voyage of 12 days along with a writer and physicist.
This cruise offers a total of six departures in the months of winter and includes at least four ports of call. This Scandinavian cruise specialist promises a week-long complimentary voyage if, for some reason, the guests are unable to witness the Northern Lights.
In Norwegian, "northern lights" is "nordlys".
5. Greenland Husky Safari
Everyone has heard of the fantastic Siberian Huskies.
Holidays offer a Dog Sledding Expedition from Reykjavik to Greenland for a trip of 11 days.The entire triptakes place on dog sleds from South-Eastern Greenland, particularly Tasiilaq.
Dog handlers or native mushers accompany you to ensure an uneventful and safe journey through the snowy landscapes.
Your 5-day stay there promises you plenty of opportunities to experience the Northern Lights. You can stay in remote and beautiful mountain huts in the middle of nature.
However, this particular voyage would require you to possess a certain level of stamina and physical fitness.
6. Igloo
How romantic would it be to witness the Northern Lights through a glass-roofed igloo?
This would literally entail sleeping under the starry lights to witness one of the biggest scientific marvels on earth.
You get to stay in Finnish Lapland which is a beauty in itself at Kakslauttanen. It’s a 3-day trip so again; there are several chances to see the Northern Lights. You can choose your preferred style of igloos above the Arctic Circle.
All igloos have a thermal and clear glass domed ceiling. They are also thermally insulated for a cozy and serene stay.
They sleep up to six and also offer a very private sauna and open log fires. You will be equipped with all the warmth you will need in there. You can choose to avail this tour from early November to early April.
In Finnish, "northern lights" is "revontulet".
7. Up in The Sky
How would you like to watch the Northern Lights up in the sky at 40,000 ft?
Aurora Flights UK offers a 3-hour flight from London and other regional airports to view the Northern Lights.This trip can be pre-booked from early November until late March.
This is an excellent way to view the Northern Lights as it also offers the maximum visibility. You can even enjoy snacks and astronomers onboard to guide you along the way.
Parting thoughts
Regardless of the way, it is an indisputable fact that Northern Lights are nothing short of a marvel that must be witnessed at least once in a lifetime. Choosing any one of these ways will give you an ultimate Northern Lights experience.
Author’s Bio: Saumya works at The Villa Escape - Norway Northern Lights Tour From India as editor. She is a 20-something fun loving and ambitious female who loves traveling and loves to share her traveling experiences. She loves solo travel trips. If not traveling you can find her behind her laptop playing games.
Disclosure: Gamesforlanguage.com has no business relationship with thevillaescape.com or Saumya Tiwari other than publishing Saumya's article.
Traveling can be a great motivator for learning a new language. As you're making your travel plans, don't forget the language(s) you may encounter.
Obviously this does not work so well for trips such as “Europe: 6 Countries in 7 Days” or similar offerings. (All you need in this case are the 10+ essential greetings and polite phrases of many European languages you can practice for free with Lingo-Late.) But if your plans include a stay of a couple of weeks or so in one country, or even in one city, learning at least the basics of the local language should be part of your preparations.
(As readers of previous posts will know, after our [first] retirement we enjoyed longer stays in several European cities and countries, see also Learning Spanish..)
Our three-week trip to Denmark in 2017 motivated us to learn Danish with Duolingo and Pimsleur. (We'll report about our experiences with Danish in a future post.)
Did You Learn a Language in School?
Learning a language in school is a very different experience from learning one outside of the classroom. What is a "school subject" on the one hand, becomes a "hobby" when you're no longer in school. It becomes a way of trying new things and discovering new places.
A school subject includes daily homework exercises, classroom lectures and drills, tests, exams, and grades. And who likes to be called on in class? All that can be a chore and may well put a damper on your enthusiasm.
On the other hand, learning a language as a "hobby" puts you in charge of your own learning. It's an adventure. Not only do you learn new skills, you explore other cultures and make new friends. Language learning can be a perfect tool for self-discovery and self-development.
And, who knows what new doors a second language will open in your work life, or even in your planning for retirement?!
A Motivator: Your Imagination!
If you drop the "school-subject mindset", learning a languagecan be a fresh and fun experience. One way to do this is to tie language learning to planning a trip.
Often, as we plan and organize a trip, we anticipate being there. We imagine touring the Reichstag Dome in Berlin; enjoying a caffè macchiato in Trastevere, Rome; strolling through the Marché Mouffetard in Paris; taking a night tour of the Alhambra, in Granada.
Or as we did before our trip through Denmark: picturing ourselves strolling through the streets of Copenhagen, ordering an "øl" in one of the harbor-side bistros on Nyhavn (picture), exploring the Hamlet castle in Helsingør. We made your imagination the motivator for learning Danish!
In Visitors' Shoes in the US
Why does knowing the local language matter? Imagine yourself coming to the US without knowing any English. You would certainly experience the country and its people as a tourist, from the outside.
Imagine having to ask everyone, every time: Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Parlez-vous français? Parla italiano? Or, Habla español? If you stayed a little longer, you would of course pick up a few words.
But if you had learned some basic English phrases ahead of your trip, your interactions with us locals would be more meaningful. I bet you'd enjoy your stay so much more.
It's the same for us when we travel abroad. The better we speak the local language, the more deeply we experience the place and its people. Being able to communicate allows us to go off the beaten track and feel confident about doing so.
We try to go with the idea that not everyone speaks English. It's something we actually have found to be true in many cases, especially if you venture off the beaten track.
The Beginner's Conundrum
However, in countries like Denmark where nearly everybody speaks English, it is often hard to practice your new language: Danish people switch immediately to English when your Danish does not seem to be authentic.
I (Ulrike) was therefore quite pleased, when a woman in a small town, whom I asked (in Danish) for directions to a bank ATM, answered in Danish. However, I also experienced the “Beginner's Conundrum”: When her answer came back in rapid fire Danish, I was lost. She switched to English, but I just asked her to continue in Danish and to slow down.
We indeed found the Bank with an ATM and could replenish our travel funds. That early success encouraged us to use our Danish as much as we could: when ordering food, buying tickets, asking for information, etc.
Why did we persist, even though English is so widely spoken and Danes themselves tell us not to learn Danish because it's too difficult. Yes, why?
When you're in another country, you're in a totally new environment. Everything's different, the way people interact, the look of the countryside, the bustle of the towns, the taste of the food, and obviously, the sound of the language.By using the local language, you're no longer experiencing the country just from the outside.
So, if you have a travel destination on your bucket list, add learning the language to your preparations. Give yourself, let's say three months, like we did with Danish. And then see how much of the language you can acquire in that time.
Use whatever resources you enjoy (flashcards, songs, films with subtitles, etc.) and just keep going, a little bit every day. As an added benefit, you'll sharpen your memory and train your ear.And when you arrive in the country you're visiting, challenge yourself to speak up whenever you can! Try to experience your visit as a mini-immersion.
Peter's Confession
I have to confess that I have developed a love-hate relationship with Danish. Even though Danish is a Germanic language and there are many words I can decipher when I READ them, I'm still a long way from SPEAKING Danish, or rather – pronouncing it correctly.
Why is that? It's because Danish spelling is not phonetic in many cases: Not only are many endings not pronounced at all, but certain vowel and consonant combinations produce very unfamiliar sounds, at least to my German ear.
Examples of Danish pronunciation as I hear them: • jeg (I) - <yigh> • mad (food) - <melth> and spelled differently but sounding very similar to • meget (much) - <melth> • det er ikke nogen (there isn't anything) - <de ehr igge noarn>
Nevertheless, I am continuing with Danish using Pimsleur, Duolingo and Memrise lessons at the moment, and hope to be able to listen soon to some LingQ mini-stories. (as Ulrike is already doing). The Pimsleur audio course for Danish lets me focus more on listening and pronunciation, without getting confused by the non-phonetic spelling.
Why am I continuing with Danish when our travels are behind us? Because I want to figure out at least the most common Danish pronunciation rules and I won't stop until I do. What started out simply as preparation for a trip to Denmark now has become a personal challenge as well as a way to keep my brain sharp.
And what keeps motivating me to continue are my memories of our wonderful trip - and my determination to figure out the Danish pronunciation rules. I'll keep you updated about my success (or failure)!
So, pick a travel destination and, yes, jump into your new language. This too is an exciting adventure. Do it with enthusiasm and with imagination, and find your motivation to stick with it. Then go there and speak up!
Bio: Ulrike & Peter Rettig are co-founders of Gamesforlanguage.com. They are lifelong language learners, growing up in several European countries before moving to Canada and the United States. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and leave any comments with contact.
When I first came across the language learning technique called “Shadowing”, I was intrigued. 
This short video is just a minute long and shows Alexander Argüelles "Shadowing" Chinese while walking back and forth on a bridge. Here the three obvious features of his technique are:
In the third video, which is just under an hour long, Argüelles goes over his Shadowing technique step by step and in considerable detail. As a number of language teachers and learners have pointed out, the technique of "listening and repeating" to learn a language is not an innovation made recently. 
Having reached the age when younger people kindly refer to us as “seniors”, we sometimes get remarks like this from friends and acquaintances:
They include educational topics from geography, math, spelling, science, to native and foreign languages.
The strongest evidence of such benefits comes from a decades-long study of 853 Scottish people, first tested in 1947 at age 11, and then retested in 2008-2010.
